iPad Air Overview

As with all Apple products, we’ve gone through several months of rumors, speculation and alleged leaks for the next iPad. Today, Apple finally unveiled the latest iPad, which is the fifth-generation iPad, so without further ado, let’s get down to business to see what exactly you can expect from the latest tablet.

The next-generation iPad, which previously was expected to be called the iPad 5, has gone through a dramatic change. As a result, Apple has decided to drop the numbers and simply call its next tablet the iPad Air. As you’d expect from the name, the iPad Air is thinner and lighter than the fourth generation iPad. The iPad Air’s bezel is 43% smaller, is only 7.5mm thin and weighs just one pound. The new tablet still retains its 9.7-inch Retina display, but it looks like Apple has been busy working on how to make the overall package smaller and lighter to handle. Apple says the iPad Mini is another one of those products they create that needs to be held in the hands to realize just how much of an impact these changes have made.

As for its insides, the iPad Air will come with Apple’s 64-bit A7 chip, which was originally introduced in the iPhone 5S, and an M7 motion chip. This makes the iPad Air the most powerful iOS tablet to ever be released as it’s 72 times faster than the original iPad. It also comes with a 5MP iSight camera that can record up video up to 1080p, a new FaceTime HD camera, improved backside illumination, dual microphones, MIMO Wi-Fi and expanded LTE support. Battery life hasn’t improved much as you should expect 10 hours of use out of the iPad Air.

The iPad Air will be available starting on November 1 across several countries which include the U.S., U.K., Japan and China in two color options: silver / white and space grey / black. The 16GB Wi-Fi iPad Air will retail starting at $499, while the 16GB Wi-Fi + 4G will retail for $629.

A new iPad means Apple will begin to do away with previously released iPads, but for some reason, Apple will only sell the iPad 2 starting at $399. This means the third- and fourth-generation iPads will be done away with to make way for the iPad Air. So for this holiday season, you’ll have the iPad Air and iPad 2 to choose from, in addition to the newly released iPad Mini with Retina Display and the first-generation iPad Mini.